Over 7,000 Guitarists Pay Tribute to Jimi Hendrix, Break World Record

The annual Thanks Jimi Festival in Poland has set a world record for the largest guitar ensemble. Over 7,000 pickers showed up to follow Jimi Hendrix‘s brother Leon and a talented group of bandleaders in playing ‘Hey Joe.’

Acoustics, electrics and bass guitars were all approved for use at the event. The first video below gives one an idea of what the collaboration was like, standing at ground level. If God enjoyed the psychedelic ’60s than this is what thunder would sound like.

Other videos show that some players brought battery powered amplifiers to the event, but most seemed to rely on the hollow body of an acoustic. Festival founder Leszek Cichonski put together the first celebration in 2003. In 2009 over 6,300 people set the Guinness World Record, a total that was topped with an astounding 7,273 Hendrix fans at this year’s event.

Watch the second video — first posted at Blabbermouth — to get an idea of what the song sounded like in front of the on-stage amplifiers.